1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to drinking vessels, and more specifically to kits for brewing single servings of hot beverages such as coffee or tea.
2. Description of the Related Art
Single-cup hot beverage brewing devices provide a practical alternative to multi-cup brewing apparatus in instances when it would be wasteful or too time consuming to brew more than a single beverage serving. And, single-cup brewing kits can be especially handy for travelling if they are compact and include all of the necessary elements for making the desired beverage.
Most commonly, single-cup coffee brewing devices include a funnel-like structure with a filter, and a lower flange adapted to support the structure above a drinking vessel. Use involves placing an amount of ground coffee above the filter and pouring hot water thereover such that the brewed beverage drips into the vessel below. Filters are either planar and horizontally-oriented, or conical; and, they are most commonly constructed of paper, although metal mesh is also often used. Perhaps the simplest example of this genera is the single-cup version of the currently ubiquitous Melita brand drip coffee brewing system which comprises a base plate with an upstanding, generally frusto-conical support for a cone-shaped paper filter adapted to receive ground coffee. The device of U.S. Pat. No. 4,167,136 issued to Chupurdy in 1979 is similar, but includes a perforated, water flow-regulating member above the filter. The Melita and Chupurdy devices are at least as tall and wide as the drinking vessels atop which they are intended to be set. This makes them a bit inconvenient to pack for travel, as does the need to carry the cup, the filter holder, the filters and the ground coffee all separately.
Yamamoto, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,417,504 issued in 1983, discloses a kit which has mating shells, one of which serves as a drinking cup and the other of which, when nested atop the first, serves as the filter support. When mated in opposed fashion the shells act as a convenient container for carrying coffee and filters, and other such coffee making accoutrements as sugar, powdered milk and a spoon. However, when packed this way for travel, the kit is twice the size of its own drinking cup.
Somewhat more compact single-cup coffee brewing devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,582 issued to O'Connell in 1977, and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,069,751 issued to Gronwick, et al. in 1978. Each includes a cup and a mating filter apparatus thereabove adapted to retain coffee grounds and regulate water flow. However, neither achieves the compactness of a coffee cup alone.
Shanklin, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,627,334 issued in 1986, shows a single-cup coffee brewing kit with all of its elements nested compactly into its own cup. Shanklin includes: a cylindrical support for a paper filter; a cylindrical, water-receiving vessel adapted to be perched thereabove; and, a container for ground coffee, all being respectively concentrically nestable. However, the Shanklin kit is overly complex, and likely unreasonably expensive. Further, when Shanklin's water-receiving vessel is stacked atop the filter support, which is in turn stacked above the drinking cup, the entire apparatus is quite tall and appears sufficiently unstable as to be dangerous, especially when the water-receiving vessel is full of extremely hot water.
In addition to the stated limitations, none of the foregoing devices is well adapted to brewing loose tea, as this requires that the tea leaves be suspended for a time beneath the surface of the brewing water rather than, as with coffee, having the water pass briefly thereover. Thus, to add tea-making capabilities to the foregoing without resorting to less economical tea bags, a conventional tea ball or other tea brewing apparatus would have to be added.
Accordingly, it appears that a need exists for a simple, compact, single-cup beverage brewing kit, which is stable and safe to use, and inexpensive to manufacture. And, it would also be advantageous if such a kit had loose tea-brewing capability, as well as coffee-brewing capability, without adding substantial extra weight or complexity to the kit, and without taking up extra space. Yet further, it would be desirable if the use of disposable paper filters could be avoided, as only a limited number thereof may be reasonably carried and, additionally, they pose disposal problems and are rather wasteful of resources. But, rigid metal mesh filters are not ideal either because, if conical, they take up too much space, and, if flat, they require means for wetting and controlling the flow of hot water over a broad surface of coffee grounds.